Beachcomber

Beachcomber

So far we’ve received at The Wave a number of responses to the reader survey. The survey will be available in this week’s and next week’s editions as well. Readers have until Tuesday, January 30, 5 p.m., to return the form to The Wave office to qualify for a $50 gift certificate to a local restaurant. Please participate – we want to read your comments, suggestions and ideas.

Rockaway’s cab drivers never learn. A Beach Car Service driver (cab license plate: T197178C) was seen speeding under the freeway, blowing yellow and red lights, on Monday morning at approximately 10 a.m.

During the holidays a "mystery" person put wreaths on the Doughboy/girl monuments and tied ribbons to the surrounding trees in that area of Rockaway Beach. The American Legion and veterans of Rockaway have taken notice and would like to say "thank you." The Legionnaires are very interested in finding out who did such a good deed.

Have you been enjoying the quiet skies overhead since the Concorde has been grounded? Well, it might be short lived! The supersonic jet might be flying once again if test flights are successful. It’s a real pain in the ear for the residents of Howard Beach, Broad Channel and Rockaway.

Rockaway’s own Taylor Murphy has made it big. The John Adams High School junior, and rising basketball player, was recently named number one in the city for points per game; number four in the city for rebounding per game; number one in Queens for rebounding per games; and number four in Queens for assists per game. The Wave will be doing a full spread story on Taylor’s success, so make sure to keep reading the sports pages.

It’s not too late to purchase tickets for the Doo Wop concert at Beach Channel High School on Saturday, January 27 at 7 p.m. Musical performances by The Channels, The Dubs, Cathy Jean and The Roommates, and many others will highlight the evening. Call Harry Gross at Beach Channel High School.

Last week we featured several photos of Beach 116 street and the damage caused by Sanitation Department snow plows. Well, the efforts of the merchants and The Wave paid off. The Sanitation Department admitted that their plows did tear apart some of the block. They have contacted the Department of Transportation and expect repair work to take place.

Our community suffered a great loss with the death of Thomas Johnson, the Edgemere teenager shot last week. Thomas was a rising football star at Christ The King High School and was being wooed by colleges like Harvard, Princeton and Hofstra. More than 150 people, from family and friends to members of the community, honored Thomas’ life at a service on Monday at First Baptist Church in Far Rockaway.

With all the attention being focused on the political campaigns on the west end of Rockaway, we must mention that things are already heating up on the east end. We’re already seeing campaign signs for longtime Far Rockaway resident David Hooks jr., who is running for the city council. Talk is that School Board 27 Vice President James Sanders jr. and Reverend Henrietta Scott-Fullard of Bethel A.M.E. Church are also considering the city council, plus we expect many from mainland Queens to get in the race. Should be interesting!

We’ve noticed that several openings where vehicles can go under the freeway ("el") do not have height markings. Trucks often "take the risk" of traveling the freeway without knowing the height limit or changes in height they might comes across. MTA, DOT – whichever agency is responsible for the freeway – address this problem.